Get together and do it again. Better.

[davywavy]

I've had one idea in my life which I'm convinced would make money and lots of it if put into action it's this one: Muppet Star Wars. A shot-for-shot remake of the original Star Wars starring the muppets. As an idea, as soon as you think of it it starts to write itself - Kermit as Luke, Miss Piggy as Leia, Gonzo and Fozzie as Han and Chewbacca, the American Eagle as The Grand Moff Tarkin, the chickens as Stormtroopers...
I remain convinced to the core of my being that it would be both utterly hilarious and also wildly popular. It's a mystery to me why Henson and Lucasfilm don't just team up and make it rather than wasting their time with second-rate filler material like The Clone Wars film and Muppet Wizard of Oz.

Anyway, I was re-watching The Empire strikes back and Return of the Jedi over the last few evenings and despite the mis-step of the Ewoks it struck me once again what good films they really are, especially in the light of the prequels. The closing reel of Empire is a masterclass in how to put together a fight/escape sequence; the genuine chemistry between the leads as opposed to Balsa Boy sucking the life out of every scene in the more recent films; and above all the way they are true ensemble pieces - in Jedi every major character (even C3PO and Wedge Antilles) gets their moment in the sun to do something heroic as part of the final victory. As examples of 'This is how it's done' I struggle to think of many better.

And as I thought about this in the light of the prequels it made me realise how there comes a time when other people 'get' a creators vision better than the original creator does. In George Lucas' case that happened pretty quickly with people like Kurtz and Kershner and Kasdan. But it also happened with Gene Roddenberry and Star Trek as well. Despite Roddenberry having the original idea the best examples of his creation were the work of people like Harlan Ellison and Nicholas Meyer, and lately JJ Abrams. And that's when my latest wheeze came to me: What Star Wars needs isn't more expanded universe bobbins and utterly uninteresting Clone Wars ho-hum. What it needs is a reboot.

I don't know if you read the fantastic winning entry to the AICN Revenge of the Sith script competition but it's worth a look just to get a feel of what could be done with Lucas' rather hackneyed scripting and half-skilled rep actor in the lead if they were handed to someone with a creative vision.
Nobody except Lucas himself wants to see the original three films remade, but give someone like Abrams a free reign and a budget and say to him "You know the story arc. Knock yourself out"? I'd give good money to see what got made.

Comments

[twicedead.livejournal.com]

You know, i have to say that the Clone Wars TV series is almost exactly what I want. Lucas inspires it and oversees it, but it is written and directed by other people who are stuck with very tight budgets and have to find clever ways to get around their limitations. The cast is passionate and work well together and it goes back to the well of inspiration for early Star Wars, old WWII movies, pulp serials and samurai films. It took about half a season to find its feet, but not it's very strong.

[davywavy.livejournal.com]

I turned off the film after the gay alien and the the fart jokes started.

[twicedead.livejournal.com]

And the film is the utter low point of the whole two seasons thus far.

[davywavy.livejournal.com]

So they made the informed business decision to attract customers to the series by releasing it into the cinema. I've not watched the series and probably won't, off the back of the awful film. I've given up on Lucasfilm for the forseeable.

[twicedead.livejournal.com]

Yeah, it was a big mistake. They weren't even filmed as a movie, but some marketing people came up with the brilliant idea.

[davywavy.livejournal.com]

Julius Ceasar had a man whose job it was to follow him round reminding him that he was mortal. George Lucas needs someone similar to follow him round and rugby tackle him every time it looks like he's going to pick up a pen.

A use of riches

[(Anonymous)]

What if someone, say Steve Jobs, came along and said, "I've always been a big fan of your work, George, I was a huge Star Wars fan as a kid, real geek, saved all my yard mowing nickels for the action figures, and I was thinking, I wonder what the first three movies would have been like, if they were done, like, totally differently? I mean keep the score, you know, and the Ralph McQuarry designs - you don't mess with a classic, George - but I thought perhaps, you know, totally new story arc for the Anakin character, maybe lose that Jar Jar guy, perhaps not mention those Mitochondrians -"

Lucas (acidly): Midichlorians.
Jobs: Whatever, yeah, anyhow, what I've decided to do, George, is put up $300 million of my own money to make those movies, I thought maybe get someone like Kirshner to direct, it'll be the ultimate fan fiction tribute, like a, you know, a homage, George. What d'you think? I thought you should be the first to know.

Anyhow, if someone like Jobs actually did this, and the movies were made on a not-for profit basis and distributed free of charge, would Lucasfilms actually be able to do anything about it? Or would it just be like fanfiction, on an enormous scale? Is there any qualitative difference?

H

Re: A use of riches

[davywavy.livejournal.com]

I've really no idea. I don't know if copyright covers any use of characters, or just commercial use. I'm sure the more fanfic-happy readers out there will educate us?

Re: A use of riches

[twicedead.livejournal.com]

The problem would be paying the people working on it - unless everyone worked for free, the distributors distributed for free and no money was made anywhere then Lucasfilm could sue.

[davywavy.livejournal.com]

Did he actually say that?